Continuing our investigation of Colossians...
Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom;
teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
Paul now
encourages the Colossian believers to have their hearts and minds saturated
with the word of Christ, the scriptures.
They were not just to mindlessly memorize it; they were to learn it and
apply its truth to how they lived; that is wisdom. They weren’t to treat what they learned as
their private treasure. They were to
share it with one another through teaching.
They were to use it to gently remind one another of its truths and
advise caution and warning when necessary.
One of the
best ways to give these reminders is through spiritual songs. When the truth of scripture is put to music,
it’s more easily remembered and brought to mind when we need comfort or are
faced with times of testing or temptation.
That is one reason I love our music director (Clay Hecocks) so much; he
uses a lot of music that is basically scripture set to music. This kind of music is an expression of
gratitude and joy resulting from the ministry of the Holy Spirit to our
hearts. It accomplishes two things at
one time--we praise the Lord and guard our hearts through the same process.
Colossians 3:17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the
Father by him.
Paul is
basically saying that any action we take and any word we say should be done in
the name of the Lord Jesus—in recognition that we have declared Jesus Lord in
our lives and that everything we do and say either honors or dishonors Him. A heart of love, devotion and gratitude is
the only acceptable response for the sacrifice He made for us and the blessings
He has given us.
Even as I
write these words, I am convicted. Our
lives should reflect that we understand that the Lord is always present with us in the
person of the Holy Spirit. This truth is
one that we change us radically if we fully embraced it. On my good days, I
converse readily with Him about how I am choosing to invest my time throughout
the day. On my bad days, I recognize
(often in retrospect) that I chose not to maintain that ongoing conversation
with Him throughout the day. Sometimes I
even find myself rationalizing poor choices to Him as I make them.
That is one of the main reasons I look so forward to His coming. I will finally be freed from the sin nature
and will be able to follow the dictates of a pure heart that is totally
submitted to His will without temptation to do otherwise.
We should
also be ever mindful of the fact that everything that is provided for us
through the Son is according to the will of the Father and through the
empowerment of the Spirit. This amazing
truth should be cause for great thanksgiving on our part. Again, I think this verse is acknowledging
the Trinity. God is a reference to the
Holy Spirit, since scripture is clear that “God is a spirit.” (John 4:24)
The wording “and” the Father gives provides further distinction.
(to be continued...)
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